


Candy Hunt

by greenho4



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Ninjago Calendar 2021 - February, Set during season 12, like some time before the speedway, lots of chaos i guess xD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:54:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28488651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greenho4/pseuds/greenho4
Summary: For the 2021 Ninjago Calendar.Apparently, Jay and Nya's epic dancing didn't earn them enough money to enter the Speedway Five-Billion, so when a mysterious opportunity to earn a cash prize through a candy hunt is announced, the ninja don't hesitate.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 9
Collections: Ninjago Calendar





	Candy Hunt

“Ugh, we _still_ don’t have enough to join the Speedway Five-Billion!” Kai said, huffing. “Even after Nya and Jay’s epic dancing, which Nya was totally better at, and all we got was 200 credits! We’re still missing 100! So, what now?”

The other ninja stared at each other for a long while, each trying to think of something. Kai paced back and forth in the middle of their little huddle, letting out indignant curses and gestures that the others chose not to comment on.

“I wish Zane were here,” Cole sighed. “He would know what to do. He’s got a plan for everything.”

Jay frowned. “Maybe we can enter the dance competition again…?”

“I’m pretty sure that was a one time thing,” Kai pointed out. “Or, if they do it again, it won’t be soon enough. We’ll be goners by then. Why does it cost so much to enter this stupid race, anyway?”

“How about that?” Lloyd asked, pointing behind Kai. Everyone followed the direction he was pointing at. There was a bright neon sign that read: “Earn some money with this quick quest!” The sign hovered above a tiny shop selling sweets, its owners bustling about trying to persuade people to buy their merchandise.

“Uh, that seems kinda suspicious,” said Jay. “But I won’t say no to candy.”

“Candy…” Lloyd mumbled, as if in a daze.

Kai shrugged. “Hey, if it’s going to get us enough credits to enter that race, then we’ll do it. I mean, how hard can it be?”

It turned out to be fairly hard.

The five ninja had trudged towards the shop, with Lloyd as their designated spokesman. Lloyd had inquired about the quest, receiving a set of simple instructions leading to a not-so-easy quest.

“It’s simple,” said one of the shop owners. He wore an elegant mustache and what looked like an avatar of Zane. It was weird seeing a Zane look alike with facial hair.

“All you have to do is complete the candy hunt! The prize money is 500 credits!” the shop owner continued, stroking his digital mustache. “We’ve provided a map for you, and all you have to do is find the candy for us! Whoever finds all three first wins the prize.”

“Can we work as a team?” Lloyd asked.

“Sure,” the second shop owner answered. She was dressed as a knight, with a helmet tucked under one arm. “As long as you turn the candy in together. There’s only one winning prize and it’s up to you how you want to distribute it.”

“Here, take this map,” the first shop owner said.

Lloyd accepted the map they offered him and turned to the rest of his team. “From what I saw, there are a couple other teams looking for the candy, and we still have to be careful about not drawing the Red Visors’ attention. We don’t want to get caught.”

“Okay, so it looks like we need three pieces of candy, each buried in some obscure place.” The young ninja scoured the map, noting the three types of candy. 

“The first candy looks like it’s in some kind of junk yard,” said Lloyd. “It’s a heart shaped candy.”

Jay perked up immediately. “Did you say _heart shaped_? Nya and I will take it!”

He casually slung one arm over Nya, who shot him an indulging smile.

“I’m not going to question the ethics of selling candy found from a junkyard,” Nya said.

Lloyd continued transcribing the map. “The second candy...it looks like it’s an ocean themed one. It’s blue. This section of the map...I think it’s underwater.”

“Ugh, underwater?” Kai groaned, smacking his hand to his face. “No, thanks.”

“Kai...we’re digital,” Cole pointed out. “We don’t even _have_ our powers.”

Kai scowled. “Still, nope! This fire ninja does not want to go underwater!”

“And the last one…” Lloyd trailed off, looking up from the map.

“What is it, Lloyd?” Nya asked.

“Oh, man.” Lloyd shook his head. “The third candy we need is _that._ ”

He pointed to the distance, where a small crowd of digi-people had gathered around a small podium. The flashing screen above it identified it as part of a car show. As the screen changed images, the ninja saw what Lloyd had seen previously: the prize for the car show was a small golden trophy, with a familiar candy necklace draped over it.

“The candy...is the prize...for a _car show_?” Cole asked.

“Looks like it,” Lloyd said. 

“Whose idea was that?” Kai scoffed.

“Well, at least it makes it easy,” said Nya. “We don’t have to go looking for it anymore. We just have to win the competition.”

“Yeah, and if we don’t win, we can always steal it,” Jay added. “Remember what we did with the Blade Cup, ha ha?” 

The boys all shook their heads at each other, smiling at their past memories fondly.

“Okay, so, I guess we can split into pairs,” Lloyd said. “For the last one, since it’s a car show, I think we can enlist Scott’s help. We can offer him the rest of the prize since we only need enough to enter the race.”

“Kai and I can take the ocean candy,” Cole said helpfully, dragging Kai towards him before the fire ninja could run off in protest.

Lloyd shrugged. “Sure.”

“I _don’t_ like this idea!” Kai protested. “Shouldn’t I get a say--”

Nya patted him on the shoulder. “Calm down, brother. It’ll be fun. Unless you want to work alone with Scott?”

Kai considered the proposal. “Fine. I’ll go with Cole.”

Lloyd couldn’t help but smile at him. It seemed they were always in danger, but Lloyd knew there was no one else he’d rather have by his side. This was his _family_.

He split the map among them, handing their respective parts to them. “Good luck, guys.”

“Ah, a junkyard. It sure reminds me of home,” Jay said, a little wistfully. He and Nya, using their section of the map, had found the junkyard in no time. However, it was bigger than they had expected, towering over them by a good deal. The two of them had begun shifting through the piles to look for the heart shaped candy, though Jay had noticed there were a few other people lounging around the area, likely ready to swipe the candy from them once they found it.

“When was the last time you visited your parents?” Nya asked as she moved aside an old tire.

Jay paused. “Hm...I’m not sure, actually. First, there was Harumi and the whole Sons of Garmadon thing, and you know, evil Garmadon being unleashed upon us. And then I got zapped into the First Realm, so I couldn’t exactly visit my parents then, either. And of course, as soon as we got back, we got attacked by ‘looming darkness’ and evil incarnate. I don’t know, man, I wish Sensei Wu could warn us about some of these beforehand.”

“We did have that break afterwards, though,” Nya said.

“Ha,” Jay laughed sheepishly. “Right...I kind of used that time to play video games.”

Nya rolled her eyes and smirked affectionately at him. “And then we got sent out into the desert by Sensei Wu.”

“Yeah...it wasn’t worth the effort, really,” said Jay. The two ninja faltered as their thoughts wandered to what had happened next, to the painful loss of one of their brethren and the grueling journey to bring him back. They came to a tacit agreement not to talk about it.

“You should definitely visit them when this is all over,” Nya said. “Who knows when our next adventure will happen? We have to appreciate our parents every chance we get.”

Jay put a hand out comfortingly. “Hey, your parents will be safe, okay? They’re former elemental masters; I’m sure they know how to fight.”

“Besides,” Jay chuckled. “The only way they can get in trouble right now is if they enter the game, and no offense to our parents, but I’m pretty sure none of them know how to handle one.”

Nya cracked a smile. “You’re right.”

She stopped her searching and sighed in frustration. “But how will we ever find the candy? This is going to take us _years_. We don’t have years!”

“Patience, Nya,” Jay chuckled. “We got this, okay? You and I have been through much worse. We’ll pull through.”

“Look, this is the worst idea _ever_ ,” said Kai stubbornly, crossing his arms.

Cole, standing in the ocean water, watched him bemusedly. “We’re digital, Kai. We can’t get wet. See, we can even breathe underwater.”

As a demonstration, Cole went further underwater, submerging himself and waiting for Kai to show up.

Kai let out a frustrated groan before taking a step into the water. “Ugh! The things I do for you guys.”

He let out more grumbles as he stepped further in. The water was neither cold nor wet and Kai supposed maybe he had been overreacting. They _were_ in a video game, after all.

“Finally,” said Cole, shaking his head as Kai joined him beneath the surface of the water. “For such a proud guy, you sure can be a wimp sometimes.”

Kai stuck out his tongue at him.

Cole opened his map. “It looks like it’s hidden in the depths, so we’ll have to go down further. Come on, let’s hurry so we don’t get caught. I think I saw a ‘restricted’ sign earlier.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever,” Kai answered. “I mean, what’s the worst that can happen?”

Suddenly, there were a couple of splashes and four Red Visors entered the water. Their red faces trained onto the two ninja.

“Hey, you there!” One of the Red Visors said, raising up its weapon. “Do you have permission to be here?”

“Uh, yeah, you know, maybe you should keep your mouth shut from now,” Cole said, tucking the map away. “Come on, let’s get out of here!”

“So...you need my help in designing a car? For a car show?”

Scott paced back and forth in his hideout, pondering the task Lloyd had set before him. He had his hood down today, though his cap was still on his head. 

“Yeah,” Lloyd said. “Though, I understand if you don’t want to help. You’ve done plenty already by providing us a safe place to hide.”

“Nah, I can’t let you lose,” Scott said determinedly. “I want to bring Unagami down as much as you. We _have_ to take him down, and if this is the way to do it, then so be it.”

“So, how do you want to do this?” Scott asked.

“I was thinking maybe you could take the wheels on this one,” Lloyd said. “Pardon the pun, but you have more experience inside the game, and with cars, than I do.”

Scott nodded. “Okay. Sounds fair.”

He examined the vehicles in his garage before settling on his favorite one. “Let’s take the Ninja Tuner Car out for a makeover.”

The two of them turned towards the mentioned car, pulling it out of its spot and setting it up. Scott rummaged through his boxes for some paint and other supplies, tossing Lloyd a couple of tools and a blueprint.

“Here, let’s get the car some cool equipment first, and then we’ll paint and decorate it. I’ve been meaning to give her some upgrades for a while now, and I guess this is as good an opportunity as any other time.” Scott grinned, offering his palm to the younger man. “We’re going to win first place, trust me.”

Lloyd high fived him. “We got this.”

A small crowd had gathered now and Jay laughed nervously, feeling their intense gazes on him. After being hunted down by enemies so often, he liked to think he knew ill intent when it hit him.

“Uh, hey, Nya, any luck on your end?” Jay asked. “We kind of need to wrap this up.”

Nya kicked an empty car in frustration. “No, of course not! This junkyard is impossible.”

She made an irritated noise. “I wish we could use our powers. I could flood this place, sweeping up all the lighter items, which we can just look through.”

“Yeah, well, nothing we can do about that,” Jay said.

“Okay, wait,” Nya said, abruptly holding up a hand. “Aren’t most of these metal? Can’t we use a magnet to get rid of most of this?”

“Uh, do the rules of physics apply in video games?” 

Nya shrugged. “We can try. I’ve ran out of patience for anything else.”

She pointed towards the crane near them, a large magnet attached to the end. “Why don’t we try using that? That has to be there for a reason, right? Video game makers don’t usually make unnecessary moving parts in video games.”

“Uh, that’s kind of debatable,” Jay said. “Some games will contain hidden achievements and bonus easter eggs. But I get your point.”

“I’ll go get the crane working,” Nya said. She hopped over some old couches and towards the crane, clambering into the seat. Miraculously, no key was needed, and there was a simple On/Off button, which Nya pressed. The crane shuddered to life and she gave Jay a thumbs up.

Jay beamed at her. 

“You might want to move out of the way!” Nya called out as she positioned the crane over the middle of the junkyard. Jay obliged and Nya pressed the magnet’s on button. There was a low hum and bits of metal shot up.

“Woah, hey, look!” Jay gasped. “Is that what I think it is?”

“Where?” Nya peered at where he was pointing.

“Hold on, let me try to reach it.”

There was something bright pink sticking out in a corner, wedged under a broken wardrobe. Jay would bet anything it was the candy they were looking for.

As Jay approached it, someone jumped in front of him--a Whack Rat. Two more joined the first, blocking Jay’s path, while a fourth went to retrieve the candy.

“We’ll be taking that,” the first said, cracking his knuckles intimidatingly.

Jay groaned. “Can’t we catch a break? Just for once?”

The lightning ninja steadied himself, tensing up for a fight.

“Duck!” 

Instinctively, Jay did as told, and Nya swung the crane’s magnet towards the Whack Rats, knocking some of them over. Jay let out a gleeful whoop.

Nya hopped off the crane, running towards them. Jay brought his fist towards the remaining Whack Rats, punching and kicking them away from the candy. Nya soon joined the fray and the two worked in sync to get rid of the rest of them.

“Whew, that should do it,” said Nya. She smiled at Jay.

“Shall we?” Jay asked, moving the wardrobe away and revealing the shining candy underneath.

Nya nodded and the two of them reached for the candy.

“I really hate this job,” Kai muttered as he ran. “We don’t even get paid for this. All I wanted to do was rescue my sister, but _nooo,_ Sensei Wu decided I simply _had_ to become a ninja!”

Cole grimaced. “Someone has to save the world, Kai.”

“Yeah, but it would be nice to take a break for once. We should go on vacation.”

“I’m pretty sure we _had_ our vacation already.” Cole gestured towards a dark tunnel. “This way.”

Kai followed him and the two ninja found themselves at a dead end.

“Are you sure you read that map correctly?” Kai questioned.

“Hey, I don’t see _you_ trying to help!” Cole argued, shaking the map at him. The earth ninja examined its contents again.

“No, this should be right. According to the map, this leads to a hidden coral reef.”

Kai cocked his head to the side. “Uh-oh, I think I hear the Red Visors. We didn’t lose them.”

Cole frantically surveyed the tunnel they were in. “There has to be a secret entrance or something! Come on, Kai, help out.”

Kai sighed but did as told. “Maybe there’s a glitch here, too.”

“Could be,” said Cole.

“Where did they go?” one of the Red Visors asked.

The two ninja could hear them stepping closer.

“Found it!” Kai shouted triumphantly.

“Not so loud!” Cole hissed but it was too late.

“There they are!” The Red Visors appeared in view, their lasers trained onto the two interlopers.

“Through here!” Kai said, revealing a small hole hidden behind some kelp plants. 

Cole dived through first, with Kai hot on his tail. The two boys squirmed through the hole before making it out on the other side.

There were laser blasts from the direction they came but it seemed like the Red Visors weren’t programmed to follow through.

“Maybe not a glitch, but a secret entrance,” Kai suggested.

“Let’s just find the candy as fast as possible,” said Cole. “I don’t want to face any more Red Visors.”

Lloyd and Scott worked at a steady rhythm, with Lloyd affixing screws and bolts while Scott adjusted various pieces and attachments.

“How long have you been in the game?” Lloyd asked, trying to pass the time.

Scott hummed a little to himself. “I’m not sure, actually. Time works differently here. It honestly feels like yesterday when I first played the game.”

The mechanic shook his head. “I miss being outside, though. I think about my family a lot--mostly my parents. They probably miss me. I’d like to eat real food again, too. Digital stuff is great and all but...nothing beats real ice cream, you know?”

Lloyd laughed. “Yeah.”

The two continued to work in silence. After an hour, Scott called time.

“I think we’re good to go,” Scott said. “I’ll give her one last polish and then head out. Do you mind registering us for the show? Preferably not with our real names? I’ll meet you there when I’m done.”

“Yeah, of course,” Lloyd said. He poked his head out of the camouflaged garage. Once he was sure there was no one in sight, Lloyd stepped out, switching to his newly bought avatar, and headed toward the car show.

The crowd had died a bit but Lloyd still had to push past people. He spied some Red Visors in the distance and kept his down, avoiding their scrutinizing gazes.

After registering as “Liam” and “Samuel”, Lloyd ducked behind a stall, waiting for Scott to arrive. As a precaution, he scanned the area for enemies, making sure to memorize the layout as best as he could.

“Hey, Lloyd.”

Lloyd turned around to see Scott driving up in his newly polished car.

“Wow, that looks good,” Lloyd said. “Good work.”

“Only with your help, of course.”

The two boys parked the car in its designated spot in one of the car show’s garages and waited for the judges to arrive. Lloyd fidgeted nervously in his spot.

“I hope the Red Visors don’t catch us,” the young ninja said.

As if the fates could hear him, there was a clatter as someone knocked over a pile of gears behind the car.

“What was that?” Scott said, going around to check.

Lloyd followed him carefully, expecting to see Red Visors. Instead, he was greeted with two racers.

“Uh, this doesn’t look good,” Lloyd said.

“Hey, wait, we’re missing a few pieces!” Scott said in alarm.

The two racers in front of them looked at each other before coming to an agreement and running out.

“Hey, wait! Come back!” Scott said. “We need those!”

“I’ll get them,” Lloyd said, running after them. “Just salvage what you can!”

Lloyd exited the car show’s garage, exhilarating at the fact that he was running hard without breathing hard. There were certain perks to being digital.

“Stop right there!” Lloyd called out.

The racers ignored him and split up. Lloyd made a split second decision and followed the one on the left. 

Apparently, the racer wasn’t familiar with the terrain as they found themself backed into a corner.

“Okay, look, just give it back, and I’ll let you go,” Lloyd said.

The racer refused, feinting to the right, but Lloyd saw through it easily, his years of ninja training showing through.

Lloyd blocked a blow from the racer, catching his arm and flipping him over, ending the fight effectively.

Lloyd picked up the fallen metallic piece and shook his head. “You should’ve left.”

He didn’t wait for an answer, immediately heading back the other way to track down the other racer. Like the first, Lloyd made quick work of him, retrieving both pieces and returning to Scott.

“Just in time,” said Scott anxiously. “The judges will be here soon. Here, grab this and put it over there.”

Lloyd followed Scott’s instructions and they had the car restored in no time.

The hidden coral reef was beautiful, Kai had to admit. Water wasn’t his strong suit, but it did create some nice stuff. Even if it was all a video game right now.

“Sooo,” said Kai as they walked. “Where are we going to find candy in all this?”

Cole inspected his map once again. “Not too sure. The map doesn’t specify. It just says the candy’s here.”

Kai sighed dramatically. “The old-fashioned way it is, then.”

They had barely gotten started when they were interrupted by an all too familiar sight.

“Uh, Cole?” Kai nudged the earth ninja next to him. “Are those...Red Visors I see?”

“What?” Cole stopped his search, half buried in corals and kelp. He spotted the same sight Kai had. A larger squadron of Red Visors was swimming towards them.

“The others must have called for backup!” Cole said. “Now we have to fight them off _and_ find the candy?”

“It’s like you said, ‘someone has to save the world’,” Kai repeated. The two ninja ducked as lasers started firing.

Kai hid behind a large red coral and then paused. “Hey, Cole?”

“What?” Cole said, his eyes on the Red Visors. “I’m kind of busy here.”

“I think I found it.”

“What?” Cole turned to him. “Did you really?”

Kai nodded. “There’s something blue in here. I can’t see it completely but...I think it might be it.”

“Okay, grab it and go,” said Cole. “We have no weapons here. We’re sitting ducks.”

“Yeah, okay, got it.”

Cole spied some rocks and picked them up, lobbing them at the Red Visors. As they drew closer and into the coral reef, some of them tossed their lasers aside for their katanas, the close range making long-distance weapons ineffective.

“Quick! Run!” Cole yelled as the Red Visors descended on them.

“Wait, I don’t have the candy yet!” Kai hollered back, reaching for the blue spherical candy wedged into the coral. His hand came up short and he went deeper into the hole, stretching as far as he could.

“ _Kai!”_ Cole called out, more urgently this time. He ducked as a Red Visor caught up to him, swinging its arm at him.

Cole grunted, kicking the Red Visor out of the way, only to be met with more. It seemed a whole squadron of them were after them now.

“Any day now, Kai!” Cole shouted, dodging more lasers. He picked up a fallen Red Visor, using it as a shield as he made his way towards Kai.

“I’m trying, I’m trying!” Kai said. His fingers wrapped around a spherical shape. “Got it!”

“Great, now, let’s get out of here!” Without any warning, Cole picked Kai up over his head and ran away, towards what looked like the shore.

“Hey, put me down!” Kai protested.

“Sorry, but we have to go!” Cole said, not slowing down in the slightest. He dashed off with Kai grumbling over his head. The Red Visors followed quickly and Cole prayed they’d be able to lose them once they were out of the ocean.

“And the winner is...Liam and Samuel!”

Lloyd smiled in relief as he high-fived Scott. “Hey, we did it!”

“All thanks to you,” said Scott. “You were the one who got the pieces back.”

“Thanks,” Lloyd said, shrugging. “It was no big deal. I’ve faced worse.”

“If it’s you and the other ninja, I have no doubt you’ll be able to defeat Unagami,” Scott said, grinning. He and Lloyd headed up the podium to receive the prize while avoiding the cameras that were trying to take their pictures.

“Congratulations,” the announcer said, handing Scott the trophy. 

Scott held it up proudly. “Thank you.”

Once they were out of view again and back with the Ninja Tuner Car, Scott took the candy necklace off the trophy, handing it carefully to Lloyd.

“Here you go, buddy,” Scott said. “You’d better find the others and cash in that prize real quick. The Speedway Five Billion will be starting soon.”

Lloyd accepted the necklace gratefully. “Thanks, Scott. We’ll see you later.”

Scott winked, climbing into his car to return to his garage. “Count on it.”


End file.
